Five Moments to Remember and Five More for Good Measure

OK, so we came back for seconds--this being Thanksgiving week and all.

Here are five more great playoff memories to feast on:

SADDLEBACK vs. LA QUINTA

1985 Central Conference final

For some of the 6,000 spectators on hand that night at Orange Coast College, the decision by Saddleback Coach Jerry Witte was mystifying.

Witte said the play that ranks among the most crucial moments in the school’s football history was a no-brainer.

The drama unfolded in 1985, in the hard-fought game between the Roadrunners and La Quinta for the Southern Section Central Conference championship.

With the score tied, 28-28, Saddleback faced a fourth-and-six at the Aztec 38 with 3 minutes 15 seconds to play. Many coaches, thinking it might have been their last possession of the game, would have gone for the first down.

Witte opted to punt.

“I debated about going for it,” Witte said recently. “The odds were not good. We felt we could stop them in three downs because they were playing a little conservative.”

Saddleback did, and soon after, the Roadrunners were celebrating.

After Saddleback punter Victor Rossano shanked a 16-yarder out of bounds, La Quinta began its final series at its 22. But the Roadrunner defense held and forced Derek Debbs to punt from deep in his territory.

The play turned into a disaster for the Aztecs.

Debbs’ punt was blocked by Hector Santa Cruz and the ball was scooped up by Antwon Lark at the 27-yard line. Lark ran it into the end zone with 1:37 left to give Saddleback a 34-28 victory.

It wasn’t exactly the ending Witte envisioned. Instead, he got a lot more than he bargained for.

LOS ALAMITOS vs. ESPERANZA

1991 Division III final

Los Alamitos quarterback Tim Carey had never thrown a more significant pass in his high school career, and wide receiver Don Ruberio had never caught a bigger one.

And the Esperanza football team had not been burned like that for a long, long time.

The play that Carey and Ruberio engineered, one that won’t soon be forgotten, gave the Griffins an 8-0 victory over seemingly unbeatable Esperanza in the Southern Section Division III championship game Dec. 14 at Cerritos College.

It also ended Esperanza’s 27-game winning streak, the second longest by a county team.

On a fourth and one at the Esperanza 35-yard line with 8 minutes 4 seconds to play before the half, the Griffins set up in a formation suited for a running play. The Aztecs expected the run. The 8,500 people in the stands expected the run.

Carey and the Griffin coaches had other ideas.

After faking a handoff, Carey dropped back and found Ruberio wide open down the middle for a 35-yard touchdown pass play. Ruberio then connected with George Sagen on a swinging gate play for the two-point conversion.